House cancels vote on pay raises for lawmakers

Published June 10, 2019 11:42pm ET



House Democrats withdrew a bill scheduled for a vote this week that would have provided a cost of living pay increase to lawmakers and congressional staff.

The pay raise provision had provoked a backlash from a group of Republicans and Democrats who wanted it stripped from the bill.

A Democratic aide told the Washington Examiner that the fiscal 2020 legislative branch spending bill, which included the pay raises, will be removed from a package of funding measures slated for a vote this week.

The legislative branch bill, which funds Capitol operations, the Library of Congress, and a few other agencies, provides a 2.6% pay increase for members and staff.

Lawmakers have blocked raises every year since 2009, when a recession began.

House lawmakers make $174,000 annually.